


A twist of Fate

by SassyFlamingo2



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, Fluff, Heartbeats, Literature, Makoto is a Sweetheart, Matching Heartbeats, Romance, Romantic Soulmates, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, fan fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-27
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2020-07-23 00:47:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20001211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SassyFlamingo2/pseuds/SassyFlamingo2
Summary: Soulmate AU!





	A twist of Fate

#### Soulmate _AU! where you and your soulmate share the same heart rate_

It's happening again. 

The warm flush that spreads through your chest like the sparks of a stoking flame, steadily raising your heart rate until it's practically racing as fast as the hooves of a thoroughbred horse. You sighed and leaned back in your chair, a delicate hand soothingly kneading the muscle and skin of your chest above the pounding organ. When the raging behind your breast didn't slow, this became one of those times you just wanted to kick your soulmate in the bum.

For the first part of your life, your heart rate had been almost painstakingly normal. It all started when you were about 12 years old. A budding photographer armed with an old fashioned disposal camera, you were always dashing around taking photos of every butterfly, flower, or whatever object caught your interest when it suddenly struck one day while you were at the beach. A soul wrenching wave of fear that swept over your little body as your heart thundered to an impossibly fast beat. The camera fell from your nerveless hands into the water as you clutched at your little chest and collapsed into the breaking waves, screaming in pain while the salty water rushed into your mouth, effectively choking you while your parents ran to your side. They rushed you to hospital where the doctors examined you thoroughly, finding no evidence of anything wrong other than an extremely panicked little girl. With an amused chuckle, the doctor suggested that maybe your soulmate was a little athlete in training and it had just caught you by surprise. 

The doctor's prediction turned out to be true as the daily increase in your heart rate became more regularly scheduled, often appearing when school was over for the afternoon. This continued off and on for the next few years -- thankfully never as harsh at that first time -- and you eventually became able to recognize the early warning signs of an impending attack. With the help and input of your best friend Gou, the search for your soulmate was narrowed down to the mostly likely candidates in the sports of volleyball, soccer, or swimming. Hopefully it wasn't a swimmer, you still had a petrifying fear of water ever since that day you collapsed in the seawater and having someone who always smelled like water would be a nightmare. Although it seemed that your soulmate wasn't any of your classmates at your school, that famous instantaneous connection had never formed between anyone you had met so far -- although you had avoided the swimming club like they were poison.

With the burning of your chest beginning to finally ease, you straightened up and resumed scrolling through the photos you had taken today. That is you clicked through two of them before the phone started ringing.

"Hello?"

"Hey, (y/n)" The chirpy chatter of Gou filled your ear. "You know your my best friend, right? Well, I ne-"

"No."

"What! You didn't even let me finish yet! I just need one _teensy_ little favor." She stressed the teensy out till it sound more like a whine than a word. You rolled your eyes. You loved Gou like a sister but sometimes her little favors could land you in a bit of hot water. Specifically when she wanted you to photograph something that was bugging her. The most recent experience was her older brother Rin's girlfriend who Gou became convinced was cheating on her beloved brother-- she is fiercely protective of Rin, much like a chihuahua. With a little coaxing to you, the intrepid investigators set to work following the older girl's movements. You hadn't placed much stock into Gou's claims till you saw with your own eyes the girl hugging a strange man. With the snapshot of evidence in place, you both marched off to present Rin with your evidence. Whoo Boy! You had never seen Rin so angry before in all your life. He ranted, raved, and yelled, raking you two over the coals for being so foolish. It turned out that the boy that Rin's girlfriend was hugging was her older brother and one of Rin's trusted teammates. After that, you steered clear of Gou's plans for awhile.

Taken your silence as permission, she continued on. "You know that swimming team I've been coaching over the summer?"

"The Iwatobi Swim Club?"

"Yeah! That's them! So listen, We're going to a big competition this weekend -- I won't bore you with the details because I know you could care less -- and I want you to photograph the boys performance and again when they finish. This is a really important milestone and I want them to remember it. I'll even pay for your fare to get there if you'll do it!" 

"I don't know.... There'll be a lot of water. You know I hate it."

"I know but I have it all worked out! You can stay up in the stands with us. Completely out of range of any water and free to snap all the shots. I promise! They'll be lots of lovely muscles for you to photography" she sang out temptingly. 

You huffed a breath. It seemed she had this plan all this perfectly laid out and she did promise no water. "Okay. I'll do it."

"Yay!!! You're the best friend ever! I'll text you with the directions later, okay? I gotta go now, Nagisa is trying to feed everyone ice cream sundaes." The call ended with a click. The swimmers were eating ice cream? Your knowledge of sports was limited but shouldn't they be in training or something, only eating high protein and high carby foods and all that jazz? Whatever. You started clicking though the photos again, discarding the ones that were blurry and out of focus and keeping the good ones to sell, your thoughts wandering the whole time as to what exactly you had got yourself into.

The following days past by in a blur. The frantic beeping of your alarm clock reminding you that it was Saturday and you had a job to do for Gou, no lazing around in bed for you today. With a quick shower and hair fixed up into a ponytail, you dashed out the door with your camera in hand, dressed in your favorite t-shirt and jeans. With the taxi having already been pre-called, he was waiting for you at the curb. You rattled off the address as soon as you slipped into the back seat. With an affirmative nod from the driver, the little cab shot off towards the bustling city. Slumping back against the seat, the opportunity to momentarily relax beckons as the houses and streets pass by in an unrecognizable blur. Unconsciously, your right hand raised to gently massage the skin over your speedily beating heart. It was faster than normal again today, much like the previous three day when the normally slow beat -- the slow speed another gift from your athlete soulmate -- pumped just a little faster as if nervous. A small chuckle bubbled up in your thoughts, being surrounded today by all that water would guarantee that you would be extremely nervous as well, a little anxious payback for your soulmate as well for all the times he had surprised you.

The cab lurched to a sudden halt, the tires squealing shrilly against the pavement as your body nearly catapulted out of the seat, the only restriction keeping you from sliding into the floor was the seatbelt you had clipped across your body earlier. Gazing out the window, completely gridlocked traffic was backed up all the way through the city. You sighed and glanced at your watch. This was going to take forever to clear and the tournament started in an hour! Gou was going to kill you.

~~~~~

The buzzing of the horn signaling the end of another race was so loud that you could hear it over the ever decreasing amount of yards separating you from the stadium. You were running, feet barely skimming the concrete and lungs burning for air, towards the stadium. Your arms pumping for speed and the bag of your camera supplies bouncing lightly against your back. Due to a delay of over four hours, the traffic had just barely started moving again at a crawl. You waited till you could see the roof of the stadium before you had just handed the cab driver his money and jumped out of the car. Based on the speed of traffic, you could easily run the remaining distance and hopefully arrive at the stadium before the swim competition was over. Dodging through people passing by on the street with the agility of a border collie, you sprinted down the sidewalk and smashed through the unlocked doors guarding the entrance.

You paused in the empty lobby for a moment to gather your breath and find the actual pool where the event was taking place. The frantic fast rhythm of your heart pounding through your temples and rushing through your ears, almost drowning out the squeaking of PA system's first words. "THE WINNER IS MAKOTO TACHIBANA" The announcer suddenly screamed over the PA system as a thunderous roar of applause echoed from a corridor to your right. That's where you needed to go. 

With your breath regained, you stalked down the empty corridor and barreled through a second set of swinging doors. The bright lights were dazzling for a moment, but the glare soon faded. You were standing at the edge of the stands overlooking the shimmering blue pool. The stands themselves were overfilled and people spilled out into the aisles, jostling each other for the chance to view the latest winner of the match. Digging your camera from your bag, you squirmed your way through the crowds till you spotted a familiar burgundy ponytailed head positioned on the opposite site of the pool. Gou had said that she would be watching the match away from the water didn't she? Now it looked like she was practically standing in the gigantic pool. You shivered at just the sight of all that slowly quivering water. A murky beast waiting to pull any unsuspecting swimmer to their death. You skirted the edge, pushing and weaving your way thorough the endless sea of bodies.

Then it happened.

An elbow driven into your back, pushing you forward.

Stumbling over a leg haphazardly thrown in your path.

Your body bounced off of another person, separating your camera and bag from your grasp.

The teetering edge of the weightless feeling as you stepped backwards, no solid materials supporting your step into the air.

Then you were falling, plunging into the fluid depths themselves. 

The water seamlessly closed where you entered, sealing your face as you thrashed. Your hands sharpened into claws, scratching at your unseen captor. You opened your mouth to scream, but the chlorinated water rushed in, drowning out the sound in a muffled cough. Your heart kept beating and beating so fast against your chest, a machine gun staccato that was slowly draining away your precious oxygen, leaving you dizzy and disoriented. Your nightmare alive and well to live another day.

A muffled thud came from your right.... or was it your left?

Arms corded with strong, thick muscles encircled your waist, gently tugging you upwards.

You burst out of the water with a splash, eyes bulging and red, gasping desperately for air. Never in all your life had oxygen tasted so sweet.

"Hey, it's okay. Just breathe for me."

The arms around you tightened, pressing you against the large expanse of a warm chest. "Nothings going to hurt you. It's okay." a voice smooth and deep like hot caramel breathed in your ear. Your tightly clenched eyes opened to see sparkling emerald orbs full of worry, shaggy olive hair, and what has to be the most handsome body ever created. Seriously, the guy could have been a model for Leonardo, he was so perfect. He was also tall, extremely tall -- your head barely coming level with his chest -- that he could easily stand on the bottom of the pool without the water threatening to drag him under by his neck.

"I'm going to carry you out of the pool, okay?"

You nodded, arms easily slipping around the damp skin of his neck as he scooped you up into his arms like you were a weightless doll. The crowd thundered their approval while your cheeks flushed bright red with embarrassment. Did everyone in the whole d*** stadium have to see your near drowning accident and rescue by Mr. Green Eyes? You were never going to live this down. The cheers grew louder as he carried you towards the edge, you buried your face in his neck while he chuckled softly. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about, you know. Not everybody is suited for the water." The deep timber of his voice rumbled from his chest directly into your ear, as did the steady hypnotic thumping of his heart. It actually barely surprised you that the rhythm was the twin to your own. A swimmer -- a child of the water who you had ironically swore could never be your soulmate -- was your own fated match. 

You decided to test your theory. "Yeah, but not everybody has to be rescued by the world's hottest guy either." Oh, boy. Green Eyes was your soulmate based on the way he blushed and both your's and his heart skipped into a hard thud your heart. If swimming in water produced living gods like this, you could defiantly learn to tolerate it.

"Makoto, you were awesome! Who have you got there" A shorter blonde haired boy cheers as we leave the water. A puzzle piece mentally snaps in place. So this was one of Gou's swimmers. The gentle giant with shoulder muscles of steel and a heart of gold, Makoto Tachibana.

Two more boys strolled up behind Little Jumpy Blonde, both tall and lean with dark hair, but one had swim goggles on and was staring at you like you were some exotic specimen where as the other just gazed on apathetically. "Why did you jump in if you knew you couldn't swim? It's extremely dangerous for untaught beginners to submerge in a body of water." Glasses boy spouted off while fiddling with his goggles. "Who exactly are you, anyway?"

"Rei! Don't be rude!" Gou comes charging onto the scene. "This is my best friend-"

"She's my soulmate," Makoto interrupted, flashing that charming smile that was surely going to be the death of you. 

The water's not so bad after all, as long as your knight in shining swim jammers is around.  


**Author's Note:**

> Soulmate Au's are so much fun! It's been a little while since I watched Free!, so there may be a few mistakes in the timeline.
> 
> Hope you enjoy it! This is also listed on my deviantart account.
> 
> Free! and all characters do not belong to me.  
> The idea does belong to me.  
> You belong to Makoto. [](https://www.deviantart.com/cookays/art/Makoto-Tachibana-Sexy-Hair-536098348)


End file.
